The National Nurses United (NNU), one of the largest labor organization representing nurses, announced that next week nurses will stage a protest to draw attention to and to demand tougher Ebola protections. Specifically, nurses all over the country will stage job actions on November 12 to highlight the very serious issues surrounding Ebola as a public health concern and to encourage hospitals to use the highest level of Ebola specific safeguards to ensure the safety of hospital employees. NNU is encouraging other professional nurses and nursing unions to join the protest.

Many of the details of the NNU protest are found on the NNU website.

Employers need to be careful how they react to the planned job actions. The NLRB has not hesitated to validate employee participation in concerted activities relating to their health and safety in the workplace as protected under federal law. Responses to each situation will depend on the specific facts and circumstances presented.

Ebola prevention and control remains a major concern in our communities and especially in public health and hospital settings. For an employer’s guide to dealing with illnesses in the workplace, see our related blog post here.